Charmed Lives March 1921 to 1970
by Halliwell-at-Heart
Summary: The Charmed Gig started long before our favourite witchy sisters. This FanFiction covers the Warren Witches lives from March 1921 and the time of the Speakeasy Cousins to 1970 when Prue is born and the Charmed Generation begins.
1. March 1921

The Charmed Gig started long before the Charmed Ones were born. Warren witches have been fighting evil for centuries while having the same relationship and everyday problems that out favourite sister witches face today. This covers the lives of the warren witches from March 1921(the time of the Speakeasy Cousins) to October 28th 1970 when Prue Halliwell is born and the Charmed generation begins.

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March 1921**

Patience Baxter banged her head on the dining room table in exasperation. Around her were piles of envelopes, all of which contained desperately-needed-to-be-paid bills. Yes, at the manor the bills continued to rise and the money continued to dwindle away. Her two cousins both had small part-time jobs while she kept house, but neither paid much as they were pretty flimsy jobs as it was vital that the cousins had jobs that would allow them to be up and free for demon fighting any time. Luckily, there weren't many fights that took place in any part of the manor, except the attic, so there weren't, to Patience's pure relief, many repair bills added on top of the rest. Patience was extremely grateful that her cousins were here to help, although it had been tragedy that had brought them together. Patience's Mother's death-Pamela Baxter. Her death had been at the hand of a demon. A rogue Kazi demon. Patience had successfully vanquished him, but not before he'd killed her Mother. She hadn't vanquished him in time and Patience still found it hard to forgive herself for that. Her cousins had come from across San Francisco for the funeral and had promptly moved into the manor with Patience permanently. Although she felt too awkward to admit it, she was eternally grateful for their support.

"Hello darling, tables are for sitting at, not sleeping on" Phoebe Bowen greeted her cousin and Patience realized her head was still on the table. She sat up to see her red-haired cousin stood next to her in a casual lounge, fur-trimmed blue dress. This was in complete contrast to Patience's peach suit. Suits weren't what she normally wore, they weren't really Patience's style, but for some crazed reason, they helped her focus more on mundane tasks such as the family finances. Her mother always said the clothes set the right frame of mind.

"Hi Pheebs" greeted Patience, calling her by her nickname.

"Eleven in the morning and you already seemed exhausted" Phoebe noted sympathetically.

"She's worrying about money and other mundane matters. Again" A third voice added and the two turned to see Penelope coming around the corner, resplendent in a red silk dressing gown. She took a seat next to Patience. "You've got to stop worrying so much" she told her and added with an impish smile "Or it'll give you wrinkles"

"There's only one thing to calm Patience down when it comes to monetary matters" Phoebe announced, heading to a nearby dark, wooden cabinet. She pulled out a bottle and waved it in front of the two. The sound that emitted from it proved Patience's suspicions that it was alcoholic drink in there. "And that would be" Phoebe continued as she headed back to the dining table. "A special something from our secret stash"

"Shouldn't _that" _Penelope started to say, pointing at the bottle, "be more well hidden?" she asked, slightly concerned at the same time that Patience's eyes widened in shock and she asked incredulously.

"At 11 am? That's absolutely terrible Phoebe!"

"But reasonable in certain situations" Phoebe replied with a smirk. "I'll be back with glasses" she left the bottle on the table and drifted into the kitchen, she came back a moment later with three glasses in her hands. She poured each of them a small drink and Patience held hers up in the air signifying a toast. The other two followed suit.

"Here's to the hope of a venture, an idea, an anything to end all our financial problems" Phoebe chinked glasses but Penelope stayed still.

"Cherie, at that point you're meant to clink glasses," Phoebe informed her but Penelope shook her head emphatically and put her glass down. She turned to her cousins with wide eyes.

"That's the answer!" She exclaimed.

"A. What is?" Patience asked

"And B" Phoebe continued "To what?"

"Drink and our money problems!" She answered in the correct order.

"You think we should forget our bills and drown ourselves in the bottle?" Patience asked sarcastically, not catching on.

"A Speakeasy!" Penelope almost yelled. "We'll turn the manor, well at least the first floor of it, into a speakeasy!"

Patience couldn't help but laugh in disbelief.

"Pen-P-P-Penny-Penelope" She said between laughs, then suddenly became sober. "That's illegal"

"But loads are doing it" Penelope argued. She wasn't going to let this go; she knew she was onto something.

"And loads aren't witches who fight evil on a weekly basis" Phoebe added, stating the obvious

"Yeah but rarely on the ground floor" Penelope argued, "It's mostly in the attic where the Book of Shadows is." She looked at both of them with desperation "We could do it, cousins, we really could." She was eager. She knew this plan would work. She knew it would be a success. And that was without her power of Premonition.

"I don't know…it's pretty risky…" Patience debated, not being won over, but apparently, Phoebe had already committed herself to the cause.

"Yeah…but think of the profit" She said "No more worrying about bills…actually having some sort of social life…no longer relying on those useless jobs alone"

"Why keep the jobs at all?" Penelope asked with a wild smile.

"You can't quit. You have to keep up a front, a pretence" Patience told her and Penelope smiled a sly smile as she turned to look at her younger cousin.

"Does that mean you're in?" She asked and Patience sighed.

"Don't talk about it like that. It makes it sound like a gangster game…" Penelope started to say that it sort of was but Phoebe stopped her in time. She figured that wouldn't be the best way to win Patience over,.

Patience looked between the two of them, from one cousin to the other and sighed in submission. She put her head in hands and murmured through her palms "Alright, lets do it"

"Yes!" Penelope exclaimed, jumping up from her seat and looking around the manor in eagerness from where she was stood.

"Come on girls we've got a lot of planning to do. The Manor is to become The Speakeasy"

"I hope I'm not going to regret this…" Patience murmured.


	2. July 1921

July 1921 

"Oh Jerry, don't be such a fuddy-duddy. Get with the program" Phoebe was saying to her husband Jerald Bowen in the conservatory. Patience and Penelope were eavesdropping in from the Parlour.

"Problems in Paradise eh?" Penelope whispered to her cousin.

"Penelope" Patience reprimanded and then sighed. "She wants the speakeasy and he doesn't. That's the basic problem," she explained but Penelope shook her head in disbelief.

"No the problems have been more and they've been round for a while The Speakeasy is just the excuse, the cover-up" She said wisely then contemplated as she looked on at the happy couple. "Makes me glad I divorced mine. Men are a complication. Hold you back" She turned to her cousin, "You'll be lucky if you never…" She stopped, realizing what she had been about to say. "Sorry I didn't mean…" She started to correct herself but trailed off as Patience held up her hand.

"I know. It doesn't matter" Patience also trailed off. She had been madly in love not too long ago. Her lover had been called away for the war like most men, and unfortunately he never returned. "Missing In Action" was the official phrase, but Patience knew the Angel of Death had taken him. Patience had felt he was her soul mate and now without him…well, Patience didn't know what. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and resumed eavesdropping, sister-style, on her cousin.

"I cannot condone this Phoebe!" Jerry was saying, or rather he was starting to yell, meaning Penelope and Patience no longer had to strain to listen in on the conversation that was fast becoming an argument.

"Well lucky for me, because believe it or not Jerry, I don't need you _to_ condone it. I am my own person and I can do what I bloody well like!" She finished before storming off in the direction of the kitchen. Jerry, at a loss, flopped down in Patience's Aunt Pearl's (Phoebe's mother) old sofa in the conservatory. Patience sighed again as she realized her Aunt Pearl was another person in the family been taken by a demon. In the vanquish of the said demon actually. She had joined together with her cousin Laura, Penelope's Mother, to vanquish a Skeletal being that had been wreaking havoc and terror on San Francisco Bay. The two had believed themselves to be indestructible, not even bothering about the fact that the potion they were making contained both Burdock Root and Eye of Newt which Patience knew as common witch sense, was a volatile combination. Despite the fact that the potion making almost killed the two alone, they still, being Warren Witches and their priority being to protect the innocent, went after the Skeletal being. They vanquished him but the impact of the vanquish killed the two witches as well. Patience had been upset but her cousins had been devastated. She wouldn't know what it felt like till four years later when her Mother died at the hands of a demon as well. The event that prompted the three to move back in together. Even though Patience would never shun her Warren destiny and duty she sometimes wondered if every witch in the family's only destiny was to die. She pulled herself out of her deep thoughts as she looked on at the down trodden Jerry.

"Aww poor Jerry" She sympathized but Penelope whacked her on the arm.

"Jerry knew what he was getting himself into-a free-spirited witch. Phoebe never wanted to be thoroughly tied down. He's got to stop trying to control her"

"Says the other free spirit" Patience smirked and Penelope had to laugh.

"Which is exactly why people should start taking my advice" she retorted. Patience was about to reply when she heard a yell and Phoebe came hurtling through the air, out of the kitchen and she crashed into the wooden alcove and dropped to the floor in a heap.

"Demon!" Phoebe warned them.

"Really?" Patience asked sarcastically as the two headed over to join their cousin. They helped Phoebe stand up and gain her balance and turned to face the red-skinned demon heading towards them. Patience threw up her hands and froze him.

"Okay, anybody got a vanquishing spell?" Penelope asked and the two shook their heads in panic. "Luckily I do" She told them "Repeat after me" Yet, before she had a chance to start chanting the demon broke through the freeze and sent an energy ball at Patience. She went hurtling backwards and slammed into a chair in the conservatory.

"Patience!" Penelope yelled and headed over to her. Phoebe held out her palm and blew lightly and as she used her power of cyrokinesis, the demon was literally frozen. She then ran over to both her cousins.

"Holds hands with her and I'll say the spell," Penelope told Phoebe. As she took Patience's hand she noticed that the ice on the demon was starting to melt.

"Okay-hurry Penelope. He's starting to break free," Phoebe, told her.

"I'm hurrying. I'm hurrying." She said before taking a breath and starting to say the spell. "_Hellspawn demon, messenger of hell. To the wasteland we three send you with this spell!_" The ice on the demon melted completely and he exploded into oblivion. Thankfully, leaving no remains behind.

"Phoebe! Are you okay?" Jerry, now that the demon fight was over felt it was safe to come and see if his wife and her cousins were okay. As Phoebe turned around to her husband to say she was fine she noticed the severe injury on Patience's arm and neck.

"Oh God. Patience" Phoebe said then held her head up heavenward. "Lance! Lance!" She yelled calling for her and her cousins' whitelighter. A moment later a tall blonde man who looked to be no older than 30 orbed in.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

"Patience, she needs healing" Penelope told him and Lance down next to her. He held his hands over Patience's wound and they started to glow and the wound started to heal. Eventually, Patience's injuries were gone completely. Patience sat up dazily, blinking slowly.

"Whoa. What happened?"

"You were hit by an energy ball, that's what happened." Phoebe told her sombrely. "We're lucky Lance healed you in time"

"On the upside we vanquished his sorry a-" Penelope was cut off with a look from Patience.

"Language Penelope" She reprimanded and Penelope rolled her eyes with a smile.

"Well, she's definitely okay. She's back to telling me off" She turned to their whitelighter "Thanks Lance" She told him and he nodded

"Anytime" he said before orbing out.

Patience stood up and started pacing silently in the sunroom. Penelope and Phoebe looked at each other in puzzlement before heading after her.

"Erm Patience? Problem?" Phoebe asked and Patience briefly stopped pacing to face the two.

"Maybe we should re-think this Speakeasy business" At the sound of this Jerry's ears perked up from across the room.

"What! Why?" Penelope asked in shock.

"Well the demon attacked you in the kitchen, right Phoebe?"

"Yes darling, but…" Phoebe admitted

"And the fight came into the dining room and sunroom, no?"

"What's your point?" Penelope asked, but Phoebe felt she already knew.

"Well what if that happens when there's a house full of people here for the Speakeasy? A house full of innocents?" Patience asked, confirming Phoebe's suspicions.

"Well we'll protect the ground level. We'll cast a protection spell. Cydarite crystals-anything." Penelope pleaded.

"Cydarite crystals only warn us of evil-it doesn't keep it away. And protection spells? If they worked so well we would have done it already." Patience argued.

"Well, we'll think of something…" Penelope said. All this time Jerry had been listening in and seeing Patience's rising doubt at the idea of a speakeasy he zoned in.

"Maybe Patience is right…maybe you shouldn't-" he began but Phoebe held her hand up in the air to quieten him.

"You!" She told him "You stay out of this" She then turned to her younger cousin. "Patience, we cannot let demons and warlocks rule our lives"

"Or ruin them for that matter" Penelope added.

"Come on. Trust us. We can make it work." Phoebe pleaded, grabbing both her cousin's hands and Patience nodded.

"Okay. Fine. But keeping it all an entire demon free affair will be up to you two alone" she said pointing at the two of them, "Okay?"

"Fantastic" Penelope exclaimed giving her youngest cousin a hug.


	3. January 1922

January 1922 

"Well, Lily, usual is it?"

"You know it is Phoebe" Lily Drinkwater replied with a smile as she leant on the bar. Phoebe was serving behind the bar today (she and her cousins took turns) and things were getting increasingly busy. As she handed Lily her usual, Phoebe took in the entire transformed appearance of the Manor. A bar, of which Phoebe was presently stood behind, had been installed and new sofas were placed everywhere for customers to laze on. Also, in what used to be the living room was now a clear space used as a dance floor and a small stage where a baby piano was being played and numerous other instruments lay in the corner, as unused at the moment as the microphone placed on the stage for singers. A local girl was due in to sing tonight. She would the Speakeasy's debut singer.

The cousins' Speakeasy had seemed to miraculously grow in popularity overnight. It was fantastic. The whole house seemed to be buzzing. Penelope was revelling in it; Phoebe could even see her now from where she was stood. She was dancing flirtily with a bachelor on the dance floor; dressed sexily in her trademark red, to the jazzy tune being played on the piano.

The piano player, Phoebe believed, was another reason the Speakeasy was such a hit. He played excellently any tune requested by any customer and he could play it perfectly. He caught Phoebe staring at him and he threw her a smile whilst continuing to play. A smile that Phoebe returned warmly, a little tingles going off inside her stomach. Yes, Gordon Johnson being the hottest guy in the Speakeasy helped the cause Phoebe thought to herself with a smile. Her eyes caught sight of Patience heading towards Gordon, putting a glass of 'water' next to him with a flirtatious smile. Yes, Phoebe thought to herself, there was competition for Gordon. If only she wasn't stuck here doing bar duty, she could be out there on the dance floor doing some flirting of her own. She was going to have to talk to her cousins about hurrying up and hiring a barman.

The song that was being played came to an end and everyone on the dance floor clapped monetarily before relaxing on nearby seats. Penelope dragged her suitor seductively to a private corner. Gordon was taking a break as well and Patience took his hand leading him into the parlour. Phoebe had to crane her neck as the two went out of sight and she couldn't see the two as well anymore but she could see the two well enough to detect her cousin's flirtatious body language. Her mouth dropped open in shock as she saw Patience take a feather-died purple to match her dress-and brush it slowly up and down Gordon's cheek in complete un-patience style. Phoebe nearly feel threw the open gate at the bar, she was so busy leaning at angle to get a better look at the shocking scene. She grabbed the side just in time before she fell. Yet, as Phoebe carried on looking in what was a twist of morbid fascination, through the shock and the odd stab of jealously Phoebe had to smile. The Speakeasy had brought about such a change in Patience. The wild lifestyle and the lack of worries about bills had brought out a daring side in Patience that Phoebe knew had never ventured out before. And if that meant Phoebe had competition over Gordon then so be it.

Plus, as Patience had so _kindly_ pointed out, she was still married and not free to pursue the interest. However Penelope, in Penelope style, had added her own wisdom by saying who says one can't have two and that she should be tied to one? Then again Penelope didn't get on with Jerry at all. He didn't get on with magic so Penelope didn't get on with him. They continually rubbed each other up the wrong way. Phoebe jumped and was brought out of her thoughts as she heard the front door slam, even above the rest of the racket. Jerry was there, briefcase in hand, he the Speakeasy and everyone in it a dirty look before storming upstairs.

"By the way he's going" Phoebe murmured to herself "I won't be tied to any men for long" She walked out from behind the bar and headed over to Penelope. She was alone now, having shoved away the guy in disgust when he'd suddenly become to clingy. Didn't they realize she wasn't into any form of commitment?

"I need you to tend at the bar for a bit" Phoebe told her, grabbing her hand and hauling her off her seat. Penelope stumbled after her in confusion.

"What? Why? I thought it was my shift later…" She said as she was shoved behind the bar and in front of a queue of people.

"It was. I've just got to sort some things out" Phoebe told her before storming off upstairs after her husband. Penelope realized what was going on and said no more and merely tended to customers. Out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of Patience and Gordon's antics and her mouth dropped open in shock not unlike Phoebe before.

"Well _she_ certainly seems to be having more fun than either of us" Penelope murmured.

"What is your problem Jerry?" Phoebe asked following him into their bedroom and slamming the door behind her. He didn't respond and merely carried on putting his briefcase away. "Don't ignore me." She warned him, but he did so, opening his sock drawer. She squinted her eyes in annoyance and blue a sharp cold breath and the drawer shut loudly. He turned to face her.

"You know how I feel about all this Phoebe"

"Yes, I do. And you know how I don't care" She retorted, "But what I do care about is you slamming you way through the house and through the customers."

"I don't want to come home to this every night! Its illegal and immoral and-"

"I like it" Phoebe finished.

"Yes, but you don't care about what I like. Or what I want to come home to! It's gotten steadily worse since this Speakeasy opened and-"

"That's it" Phoebe interrupted, "You don't like the fact that this is giving me more independence."

"Well you're my wife goddammit!" he exclaimed.

"That doesn't make me your property!"

"You do what you bloody well like all the time! You and your cousins. Always together! Its like I'm not even here!"

"And we're a lot better for it when you're not!"

"I want you to be a wife. Cook me dinner."

"You knew what you were marrying into Jerald. I didn't want to marry in the first place but you convinced me and now you're trying to control me and tie me down!"

"I'm not I-"

"What do you call it then? Coz it sure as hell isn't free will!"

"We used to get along swimmingly Phoebe!"

"Maybe we didn't know each other well enough then!"

"Well what are you saying?"

"I'm saying…" she quietened down, they both did and after all the shouting the silence hurt her ears "I'm saying I want a divorce" She whispered.

"What?" he gasped back

"If this doesn't get any better soon, and I mean soon Jerry, I want a divorce" she told him sombrely. Then, realizing there was nothing left to say she left the room closing the door quietly behind her.

Jerry collapsed on the bed. He didn't know what to feel, he just felt numb. Sure Phoebe wasn't his _ideal_ wife but he loved her and now she was walking out of his life forever.

Phoebe walked down the stairs back into the foray of the club with a straight face. Before coming into everybody's sight she wiped away some sudden tears from her eyes and put on a bright smile as she headed over to her elder cousin.

"Thanks Penelope, I'll take over from here now" She told her, resuming her place at the bar.


	4. March 1922

March 1922 

"I think he's hired"

"No, Penelope, you think he's good looking"

"Not at all Patience…his bar skills are clearly exemplary…"

"_Clearly_" Patience turned to face her eldest cousin head-on. "Penelope we are not hiring a bar man merely on how _exceptionally_ good he looks in that suit"

"Hypocrite" Penelope murmured so low it was barely audible but Patience heard her.

"Excuse me?"

"You my dear cousin are a hypocrite," She repeated and Patience was shocked.

"What? I am _not_" Penelope just continued to stare at her "Well, why on earth would I be a hypocrite? Do tell." She prompted.

"Well you have _your_ piece of…" she smiled cheesily "meat. And now you won't let me have mine!" She whined.

"W-w-what?" Patience stuttered through laughter at Penelope's turn of phrase, "What piece of meat?"

"Gordon" Penelope sing-songed.

"Gordon is not my…'piece of meat,'" Patience denied but the blush that rushed to her cheeks told a different story.

"Don't be ashamed Patience. You deserve somebody. You can't mourn over Bert all your life" Penelope told her warmly, referring to Patience's ex-lover who had been killed in the war.

"I know, you're right" She admitted, "But Gordon isn't my piece of meat," She denied.

"Oh please, stop being so coy. You're all over him," Penelope acknowledged with a slight smile. "It's been driving dear Phoebe crazy"

"Phoebe's married" Patience stated.

"Aha!" Penelope exclaimed, pointing at her cousin with conviction. "He _is_ your piece of meat!"

"Okay, fine, I'll admit it. Just as long as _you_ stop using the phrase 'piece of meat'."

"Agreed" Penelope shook hands on it triumphantly.

"So driving Phoebe crazy is it?" Patience prodded

"Completely"

"Well, she shouldn't be going after Gordon anyway. I mean she _is_ married"

"Not for long by the sound of it" Penelope said knowingly.

"You really think they're going to get divorced?" Patience asked concerned.

"If things don't change between them" her cousin answered, equally concerned, "and it doesn't look like they're going to anytime soon"

Suddenly music burst through the speakeasy as the first notes of a song were played on a piano followed by other instruments joining in. People who moments ago had been lazing on sofas, pillows on floors or drifting aimlessly and talking in the rooms suddenly gained direction as they grabbed a partner and ran to the dance floor. Once the dance floor filled up people used other dance space and began to dance. As the singer on the stage burst out courageously into song Penelope turned to her cousin.

"Well, since both our meats are busy want to dance?" She asked

"I thought you promised not to use that phrase anymore" Patience pointed out, but Penelope ignored her and just grabbed her hand.

"Come and dance cousin," She laughed, dragging Patience onto clear dancing space

"_Only one thing stops you dear, you're too good, we're too good_" The singer belted out and losing themselves in the music Patience and Penelope began to dance. However, half way through the song they were interrupted by a tap on the shoulder. The two turned around to see their other cousin Phoebe.

"Where's the warlock blinding potion?" She asked them.

"What? Why?" Patience asked, immediately stopping dancing.

"To feed next door's cat," she replied sarcastically. "Because warlocks keep blinking in and I can't frost them long enough to say the vanquishing spell," She informed them.

"It's in the kitchen. The cupboard above the sink" Patience told her.

"We'll fend them off till you get it" Penelope said before running off to the attic with Patience.

Patience and Penelope entered the attic to see three frost covered, immobile warlocks and two that were not so mobile. One of which threw an athame at Penelope, which she dodged excellently, and the athame flew past and embedded itself in the wall. She ran over to it and pulled it out of the wall and threw it back at its owner with fantastic aim and he burst into flame. He was immediately replaced by another blinking in and a miniature battle ensued between the warlocks and witches.

"Got the potion!" Phoebe announced as she came back into the room a few moments later. She briefly took in the fact that both her cousins were in deep hand-to-hand combat with the warlocks before she threw the potion down. A blinding flash went off and the warlocks stumbled around putting their hands to their eyes. The two cousins backed up to join hands with Phoebe. Phoebe held a piece of paper with scribbled writing on it, in front of them. "Say this spell" She told them.

"_Take this spell blessed be_

_And multiply its power by three_

_And these words shall vanquish thee_!"

The warlocks, one by one, exploded until there were none left. In the silence, the three cousins could slightly hear the music downstairs come to an end.

"Nice work cousins" Penelope told them, patting each of them supportively on the shoulder before heading to the attic door. As she stood in the doorway she turned to face her cousins "I'm going to seduce the barman" She said breathily, striking an over-the-top pose in the doorway and Patience and Phoebe burst into laughter. "Laugh you may" She smiled "But you have to admit-Jake Larson and Penelope Russell-it has a ring to it" She walked down the attic stairs leaving her cousins laughing hysterically at her in the attic.

"Does she know he's married with a daughter?" Phoebe asked.

"Best not to burst her bubble" Patience laughed back. 


End file.
